the fiscal cliff does not exist! this is yet another false choice!

Brian,
Read through this comment thread regarding your interview with Kathryn Wylde. Do you see a pattern in the opinions expressed regarding a need for you and WNYC in general to become more journalism oriented rather than simply serving as a podium for wags, propagandists and bald faced liars. I must assume that Ms Wylde is paid a very handsome salary for her work as mouth piece for Peter Peterson and corporate America more generally. She is the CEO of Partnership for NYC, but given the list of national and international corporations that make up the Partners it is difficult to see why NYC is a part of the organization's name. Its own web site describes its Associate Partners as "....entrepreneurs and CEOs of small businesses, agencies or organizations with a significant profile in the city." Small businesses? Read the list Brian. That description is a joke. Wylde is the CEO of an organization that would more accurately be named Big Bucks, Inc.

Bad enough that Brian Lehrer gave this corporate/right wing propagandist plenty of free air time to mislead the public with the false notion that the government deficit is the problem with the economy. But a day later excerpts from her falsehoods were still airing as NEWS on WNYC. The failure to offer equal time to opposing viewpoints on such important issues is one chief reason why I dismiss WNYC as a credible or reliable news source and don't like contributing to their upkeep. Why not invite Paul Krugman to offer a counter argument, as he did recently in his New York Times column?

And by the way. Please stop calling yourselves New York and NEW JERSEY public radio. Your New Jersey coverage sucks, and was never worse than during Hurricane Sandy.

The 'Fix the Debt' people are really getting out there spreading the word.

It's always the same rubbish: "We'll raise taxes if you lower Soc. Security benefits."

It's all about the 'deficit', they say (I mean it's in their name) but the real reasons for the deficit (Bush Tax Cuts, Great Recession, etc.) are things they simply sweep under the carpet.

But in any case, thanks for the dose of bankster propaganda.

I find it most disappointing that Mr. Lehrer rarely challenges his interviewees when they present a premise which is not supported by facts. Todays interview with Kathryn Wylde is yet another instance of that approach. The guest is entitled to say anything without being challenged on the validity of the statement based on facts in evidence. Most aggregious is the continuing claim that "entitlements" are a major contributor to the budget deficit and, in particular, the lumping together of Social Security with Medicare and Medicaid under that rubric.

First and foremost Social Security is in no way legislatively connected to the two medical insurance programs. Social Security, in spite of the efforts to deny so by people like Peter Peterson, is not a contributor to the deficit. There is no legal basis for the claim of a "unified budget."
Social Security is funded by a legally established payroll deduction legislatively described as Federal Insurance Contribution Act (FICA). It is the worker's own contribution to his or her future retirement income. It works in much the same way that any insurance annuity works. Recipient benefits are paid out of that fund of money, the Trust Fund. Social Security is not a contributor to our budget deficiency. In fact the Trust Fund exists for the purpose of accounting for and "investing" the excess FICA deductions that have accrued over the past thirty years. The investment is kept in the form of Treasury notes, so the Social Security program is, in fact, a creditor to the Treasury of the US. It can only be referred to as an entitlement based on the fact that all beneficiaries had spent a life time of work making contributions (FICA deductions) to that system. The term payroll tax is misleading in that FICA contributions are not a tax which accrues to the general budget. Those contributions are sequestered assets which are invested in our country in the same way that many other governments and individuals invest in US Treasury notes.

That Ms Wylde would be allowed to describe budget issues on your show without the slightest challenge to some of the misleading comments she made is reflective of the media's intention to report commentary rather than practice journalism.

The Army Corps of Engineers signed off on the safety of the Garbage Transfer Station @ 91st S & the East River in spite of it's being in a Zone A Hurricane area. During Sandy, that zone flooded, with waters advancing almost to 2nd Ave and rising up almost 2/3 way up cars parked along 1st Av and knocking out power. Does Richard Hake know whether this has impacted on plans to begin construction as early as end of November?

Ms. Wylde concentration is on investors and large corporate business. The issue should be a concern to many people because many IRA, 401k and pension plans are invested in the stock market.
However she did not touch the issue of small business which employs more people than big corporations. If income taxes rise for individuals over 250k it will effect small businesses who file at the individual tax rate, such as independently owned stores and restaurants. The result could be combined with the rising cost of health care a slow down in hiring. This will hurt any economic recovery.

Brian finally succeeded in getting her to expose her real agenda...at the end when she implicitly and explicitly states that we need to go down the same path as Greece.

That's the path to hell folks. Do we really want to become a nation of peons...just so the 1% can stay filthy rich?

Bryan, please do get some progressives on to share the sane and morally correct and fiscally correct view!

We've fallen for this kind of bs before.....let's not be fooled again!!!

Nick from NJ is so correct about Kathryn Wylde. She mentions that buried in all that "Fix the Debt" roster of people is Pete Peterson, a man whose intention is to get rid of the New Deal programs--have heard him rant about Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid--not needed, not necessary. So Kathryn isn't really being honest with us. She has an agenda, but is unwilling to be upfront about it!

Shockingly one sided show.... With no phone calls to refute, just the corporate view, with the billionaire head of Black Rock quoted abouted how we can't sustain the aging population with out cutbacks. Shame on you Mr. Lehrer.

Listening to this one-sided piece of right wing fiscal BS reminds me why I stopped donating to WNYC. Am now changing the station.

This 'fiscal cliff' is a bad analogy.

Cliffs are funny things. Sometimes you can't tell how long a fall you're facing until you approach the edge and look down. You might be facing a precipitous drop, but you might get there and find a short jump to a safe landing.

It's not a cliff we're facing. This lady has bought the panic mentality.

I heard so much about the Physical Cliff and how we all are going to bite the bullet, however, you never hear how this will effect the senators and congressmen. If their future depended on the outcome I think they would get right on it. Thanks for you time, I enjoy your show very much.

Horrible representative of the Fix The Debt campaign. She must be a cast-off from the Romney Campaign. Mouth and brain are not connected.

Another Pete Peterson flack & Wall ST hack.

There is no fiscal cliff, Ms. Wylde would set off an Austerity Bomb that is guaranteed to put us back into recession as the UK and EU have already proven.

Another "common wisdom" know-nothing.

The CRS study that the GOP tried to quash proved that this lady is only talking Peterson/Norquist talking points.

WNYC can do better!

Brian Lehrer never misses one of these fiscal trickel down people and then asking soft questions. Brian...they will come on anyway because they are paid talking heads...or are you really this conservative?

This woman is a silly, plutocrat shill, and her line here reflects their myopia.
What needs FIXING, is the economy. And the "austerity" she's promoting will hurt recovery (as has been proven historically and by Europe right now) and perpetuate the income inequality which is the STRUCTURAL problem needing address.
Yes, we want to prevent the fall over the cliff, but we need to do it in an economically progressive way.

It's kind of funny how she keeps talking about "New Yorkers" as if everyone in New York is high-income.

Oh, dear. More financial services/ruling class propaganda.

Is K.W. aware that, as a percentage of GDP, government debt payments are historically low today?

And strange, that she's only concerned about unemployment, when there's a chance of gutting "entitlements" -- including those unrelated to the national debt.

And how does this person to use "we", when talking about New Yorkers?

"Please get ...Michael Moore."

Guffaw.

Next thing you know, the Dems will want Al Franken in the Senate !

Oh, gosh................

The danger of a recession is not from the debt itself (markets keep buying US bonds) but from the politics of this impasse.

We do not have a debt crisis and a jobs problem. We have a debt problem and jobs crisis! Could someone tell Wylde to set priorities in the right order.

baloney

If bush tax cuts on the rich are allowed to expire as part of any deal, then a deal will happen pretty quickly. It really is as simple as that.

This lady needs to find a productive hobby. These are the same gang who told us we had to pass TARP or the sky was going to fall. Let the legislators solve it without this sort of posturing.

Bravo, Kathryn Wylde !

WYLDE FOR MAYOR 2013 !!

Choose an adult and reject the usual Democrat suspects (Quinn, et al)... all union puppets.

Kathryn Wylde has an agenda, she's a PR tool for the financial establishments. It's to economically terrify people into believing the world will come to an end on December 31st if Democrats don't cave in to the Republican demands to leave the tax breaks for the sich in place.

This is the same type con job the rich played at the beginning of the Obama administration...and he fell for it back then as did most of us.

What's happening now is "The Shock Doctrine" at its most insidious.

Please get Naomi Klein, or Naomi Prins or Ralph Nader or Michael Moore on to present a countervailing perspective!